ROOTED, BUILT UP, AND ESTABLISHED IN THE FAITH

Knowing what the Bible says concerning what God requires of us in order to be saved is extremely important.

The Bible says, “There is a way that seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” (Prov 16:25)

Jesus said in John 5:39 to “Search the Scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of Me.”

I looked up the Strong’s definition of ‘think’ – it means ‘to seem truthfully’

Oxford dictionary defines the word like this – ‘to have a particular opinion, belief, or idea about something.’

 

There are many varying opinions, beliefs, and ideas about how to be saved that seem to be truthful, but there is only one right way – that is God’s way.  And why Jesus instructed us to SEARCH the Scriptures to know what God says. 

Paul instructed the Church in Colossians 2:6-7  the need to be Rooted, Built Up, and Stablished in the Faith, as ye have been taught, ABOUNDING therein with Thanksgiving. 

1. Rooted  (your foundations need to be secure and founded in the Sound
           Doctrines of the Bible so you cannot be swayed.

          The Bible warns against being swayed by every wind of doctrine. (Eph 4:14)

               There will be winds of doctrines that will arise that will try to sway what
                you believe.  Just this past week, I’ve encountered several floating
                around the internet.   But because my foundation is rooted deep, I can  
                not be swayed.  I know what the Bible says and therefore I can discern
                the counterfeit strange doctrines floating around and know they are
                false doctrine.                 

2. Built up in Him 

           Your foundation must be sure, secure and firm before you can start                          building upon it.  
           If it’s not, the house you’re building upon it will not be stable.  It
           may appear to be but in due time, the instability will be revealed as the                   house begins to collapse.

           It is the same in our walk with God.  We need to make sure our foundation
           is secure and firm – that’s why Bible studies are so important, especially
           right after a person gets saved.  Those Bible studies are to help a new                       convert to get rooted and grounded so their Faith can be built upon
           from there.

           If we’re not securely rooted, the building of our faith will eventually come
           crashing down when contrary winds of doctrine get sowed in the heart and
           confusion follows.   Get your foundation secure then it can be built upon to
           stand the tests and trials that come.  

3. And Stablished in the Faith 

          Meaning to be settled or installed relatively permanently in a
          position….proven valid or true.     What you know to be the Truths of God’s
          Word should be firm and unmovable and unshakable.

 

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY? 

There are so many varying beliefs and teachings concerning what a person needs to do in order to be saved.  Some believe that all you have to do is just believe on Jesus and they’re saved. Some believe baptism and the infilling of the Holy Ghost is optional.  But what does the Bible say? 

We find in Acts 17:11 that those in Berea not only received the Word with all readiness of mind, but they also would search the Scriptures daily to confirm that what they were being taught was accurate.

Acts 17:11

These are more noble than those in Thessalonica,
in that they received the Word with all readiness of mind,
and SEARCHED the Scriptures DAILY,
whether those things were so.

 

We need to search the Scriptures so we can see whether these teachings and philosophies we hear are so/are correct.  We need to learn to rightly divide the Word.

 

Where do we begin?

If we want to know HOW to be saved, we look to the Book of Acts – that is where the birth of the Church is recorded and we can find evidence of how the first believers came to be saved = They believed, repented, were baptized in Jesus Name, and were filled with the Holy Ghost evidenced by speaking in other tongues.

Then to grow as a Believer in Christ and learn how to be a Christian and what we need to continue to do AFTER we’re saved, we look to Romans through Jude = where we find instruction, correction, admonition, and inspiration.

 

RIGHTLY DIVIDING THE WORD

We need to know whether these things be so and how to answer. 

There is a belief floating around the internet now concerning salvation and the thief on the Cross.  The post asks how the thief on the cross fits into your theology?  They point out that the thief was not baptized, he was not filled with the Holy Ghost, he wasn’t at Church, yet Jesus said, “this day shall ye be with Me in Paradise.” 

So, how does that fit when we teach and believe according to the Bible that we must repent, be baptized in the name of Jesus, and be filled with the Holy Ghost? 

We need to keep in mind: It is not ‘my’ theology or ‘your’ theology, but we must look at the Bible, what it says, and rightly divide the Word of God. 

We find the account of the conversation between Jesus and the 2 thieves recorded in Matthew 27:33-44 + Mark 15:22-32 + Luke 23:32-43.

Jesus is being reviled and mocked as He hung writhing in agony on the cruel cross of Calvary.  On one side hung a thief worthy of death.  Despite his agony, he joined in the mockery. 

On the other side hung the other thief who realized they were deserving of death.  He rebuked the other thief for his mockery and for lack of proper fear toward God.  He knew they were getting ready to meet their Maker and give account for all their sins.  He had a healthy fear of God as he humbly asked Jesus to remember him when He came into His Kingdom. 

Jesus said unto him, “Verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with Me in Paradise.”

At this point, they were still under the Old Testament Dispensation of Law where atonement for sin still came through the sacrifice of a spotless lamb.  That man had no way to offer a lamb to atone for his sins as he hung there dying beside Jesus.  BUT JESUS offered Himself as the spotless Lamb that day and made atonement for that man’s sins.

We have to keep in mind this was still under the Old Testament Dispensation of Law.  Dispensation is referring to way that God dealt with His people down through time.  The Law was more than just the 10 Commandments.  It was an extensive list of rules, laws, and ordinances of God given to Moses.  

The Law was our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. (Gal 3:24) Romans 10:4 lets us know that Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness.  The Dispensation of the Church Age did not begin for another 50 days after the Crucifixion when the Holy Ghost was first poured out on the Day of Pentecost.

So, is believing all we need to do to be saved?

If all a person needs to do to be saved is just believe on Jesus, then there would be no necessity for Peter to respond on the Day of Pentecost the need to Repent, and be baptized EVERY ONE in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and the Gift of the Holy Ghost. (Acts 2:38).  The many other Scriptures that discuss the necessity of Baptism and the infilling of the Holy Ghost would be pointless….if, all we must do is believe or pray a sinner’s prayer. 

We know the first thing we must do to be saved is to believe and the next is to repent. What next? 

Jesus Was crucified in Mark chapter 15.  He resurrected in Mark 16.  After Jesus rose from the grave, He appeared to the Disciples and continued to teach and expound Scripture for approximately 40 more days. 

In Mark 16:15, Jesus instructed His disciples to GO into all the world and PREACH the Gospel. 

Then He taught in the very next verse (vs 16) : he that believeth AND IS BAPTIZED shall be saved.  But he that believeth not shall be damned. 

Jesus instructed that we must not only believe, but we must also be baptized in order to be saved.

Peter (who was taught by Jesus) also taught that baptism doth also now save us (1 Peter 3:21) and commanded all to repent and be baptized EVERY ONE in the name of Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38). 

Jesus continued teaching in the next verse (Mark 16:17-18) that there are signs that SHALL follow every believer….they SHALL SPEAK WITH NEW TONGUES. 

So, we find that Jesus taught after His resurrection and before His ascension up in to Heaven that (1) we must believe (2) we must be baptized in order to be saved (3) signs should follow every believer including speaking with new tongues (which is the sign that a believer has received the Holy Ghost).  Peter preached this as well on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:38-39). 

The thief on the cross was saved under the Old Testament dispensation of Law.
We are no longer under the law.  We can not have our sins covered in the same way they formally did with the blood of bulls and goats. (Hebrews 10:4) 

We are currently in the New Testament Church dispensation which began on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Ghost was first poured out. Our sins are now not only covered by the Blood of Jesus; His Blood now CLEANSETH us from ALL SIN. (1 John 1:7)

We are now commanded to repent of our sins, be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins…  I know our go-to verse is Acts 2:38 but there are many more which support and reaffirm this teaching and we need to know them and memorize them so we can aptly teach when questions arise…..

Acts 10:48
And he commanded them to be baptized in the Name of the Lord.

 And we shall receive the Gift of the Holy Ghost evidenced by speaking in other tongues. (which again, there are more Scriptures than just Acts 2:38-39.

Some believe the Holy Ghost is optional.  Others believe you receive the Holy Ghost once you pray the sinners prayer without any outward sign or manifestation appearing at that moment. 

We need to know and make sure the Bible agrees with that teaching. Because Romans 8:9 lets us know that if we do not have the Spirit of Christ, we are none of His.  That means we don’t belong to Him.  We’re not His child if His Spirit is not in us.  We need Christ’s Spirit residing in us.  And we need to know what the Bible says will be the sign that we have received His Spirit in us. 

 

Our eternity depends on making sure we are saved just like the Bible says and that we KNOW we have Christ’s Spirit residing in us.

We NEED Christ’s Spirit residing in us. That is where we receive power (Acts 1:8) The devil is deceiving too many into believing they do not need it or that they’ve received it when they haven’t….because He knows the Holy Ghost gives that person power over him and power to overcome sin.

Jesus taught these things to His Disciples who then taught it to every one they came in contact with.

Jesus is coming soon!  We need to be reaching for the lost and we need to know how to give an answer and what to teach them. The harvest truly is plentiful but the laborers are few.  Pray that God will make you a fisher of men.  

I’m giving you the condensed version tonight because it would take too long to go into such an in-depth study of the Scriptures concerning Baptism and the Holy Ghost.  So, we will continue more on this topic next week.